Wednesday, July 6, 2016

Lean Tips Edition #97 (Tip # 1456 - 1470)

For my Facebook fans you already know about this great feature. But for those of you that are not connected to A Lean Journey on Facebook or Twitter I post daily a feature I call Lean Tips. It is meant to be advice, things I learned from experience, and some knowledge tidbits about Lean to help you along your journey. Another great reason to like A Lean Journey on Facebook.

To
be successful, you have to have courage. And to become courageous, do
courageous things. Much of being successful is about going beyond what you
think you're capable of -- venturing into the unknown. Whether you fail or
succeed, you will learn and grow. Growth, in and of itself, means attaining a level
of success whether it came from success or failure.

Lean
Tip #1457 - Be Willing to Take Risks.

There
are no guarantees on any path to success in life or business. The unknown is
always looming. Therefore, risk and education are often the mechanisms necessary
for knowing more clearly if you're on the right path.

If
you're afraid to risk, you will put limits on your success and stay where
you're comfortable. You cannot get what you want if you don't risk rejection
and go for what you desire.

Lean
Tip #1458 - Show Appreciation for Your Employees.

Workers
who feel appreciated will be more motivated and productive. Praise employees
publicly during meetings. Give spot awards. Profile employees and their work in
company publications. If an employee puts in extra work on a project, recognize
this. If you fail to reward hard work, your employees will not work as hard.

Lean
Tip #1459 - Create a Culture of Accountability.

If
workers are given ownership of their work and know they will receive feedback,
they will work more meticulously. Accountability also means giving workers a
clear sense of the direction of the company and how their work contributes to
driving the company in that direction. If they feel like their work matters,
rather than just being cogs in a huge machine, they will work harder.

Lean
Tip #1460 - Invest in Training Your Employees.

All
your employees will benefit from training, as it both makes them more valuable
employees and creates a sense of indebtedness to the business, which leads to harder
work. Pay particular attention to supervisors and middle managers who are just
stepping into leadership roles. They are the key to transmitting upper
management's vision and organizing work in an efficient manner, so extra
management training for these positions will go a long way towards improving
company productivity.

Lean
Tip #1461 - Empower Your People

As
you develop strong relationships you’ll see frontline employees wanting to step
up. This is your opportunity to empower them. Encouraging authority,
accountability, and responsibility at all levels creates a high performance
team. Your role as leader is not to micromanage every detail of your
organization but to rely on hundreds or thousands of people, each working
toward a common purpose to be willing to make important decisions, exercise
discretion, and answer for those choices. Let your employees know you trust
them implicitly. They’ll earn it.

Lean
Tip #1462 – Be Authentic, Share Yourself

One
of the places most leaders fall down on the job is being inauthentic. They’re
afraid to be vulnerable and known to others. Leadership has created a mental
barrier that separates them from other people. Be honest about who you are,
where you come from, and what you value. If you manage to practice all the
previous strategies but don’t share your authentic self, you can’t build
lasting relationships. Frontline leadership is about creating, reinforcing, and
nurturing strong relationships.

Lean
Tip #1463 – Expect Resistance to Change

Do
not be surprised by resistance! Even if the solution a project presents is a
wonderful improvement to a problem that has been plaguing employees, there will
still be resistance to change. Comfort with the status quo is extraordinarily
powerful. Fear of moving into an unknown future state creates anxiety and
stress, even if the current state is painful. Project teams and change
management teams should work to address resistance and mitigate it, but they
should never be surprised by it.

Lean
Tip #1464 – Seek Mentors.

Mentoring
should be a necessity when it comes to planning out the improvement and
development of future leaders. Mentoring is a popular idea for growth when it
comes to leadership training. Make sure that your employees' mentor-mentee
relationships don't just happen in a vacuum, however. One of the best benefits
of mentoring is knowledge transfer, so give mentees and mentors structured ways
to share what they've learned from these relationships. Successful employees
have multiple mentors, so by building on that network effect, you allow leaders
to branch and ultimately thrive.

Lean
Tip #1465 - Lead With Passion, Not With Fear

Whether
it be a good environment or a tumultuous one, leaders should never turn to
invoking fear. In fact, in times of intense tension I believe that patience is
even more important. Communication, clear objectives and performance feedback
are critical in turbulent business environments but a fear-invoking boss can
work to make bad situations worse. Lead your staff in an inspiring and
passionate way – don't let their work be motivated by fear of your wrath.
Remember intensity is different than fear. You can show passion but don't let
it turn into intimidation.

Lean
Tip #1466 - Have a Strong Lean Improvement Strategy

You'll
need a solid plan and some attainable targets before implementing Lean. Utilize
checklists and to-do lists, and you’ll always be working towards a goal. Look
at every step in your process from the customer’s perspective: Is all that
you’re doing something that he or she would be willing to pay for? If not, it
is time to get back to the drawing board.

Lean
Tip #1467 - Get the Whole Team on Board

To
get the greatest advantages out of Lean, the entire organization should adopt
and promote its practices, and extend its influence to suppliers as well. You
must involve the people who are the closest to the work and you must get
support from senior management as well.

In
order to get people motivated, they must value the goals set for Lean
manufacturing. These goals must be challenging, yet obtainable for your
employees. Further, always ask for feedback on these goals, as well as progress
toward target attainment. Feedback should always contain measureable facts and
figures.

Lean
Tip #1468 - Discard Conventional Fixed Ideas

Part
of problem solving is thinking “outside of the box.” Encourage fresh
perspectives and ingenuity in your team in order to develop innovative ways to
forward Lean manufacturing without changing what is already efficient and
successful. With such a rapidly evolving climate in manufacturing, sometimes
conventional thought is what leads to the problem in the first place!

Lean
Tip #1469 – Don’t Just Talk About it, Do it!

Once
you have a Lean strategy in place, put it into fast and thorough action.
Naturally, implementation is what ultimately yields results and improvement.
The last think you want is to devise and formulate a Lean campaign that then
sits on the shelf and collects dust. Run with your Lean plans as soon as you
have everything nailed down.

Lean
Tip #1470 - Concentrate on Bad Processes, Not People

By
concentrating on the processes and building continuous improvement, you will
have the culture change that you are looking for. Also, correct mistakes
immediately. Don’t wait for the next shift, the weekend or maintenance to do
it.

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Tim McMahon is the Founder and Contributor of A Lean Journey Blog. This site is dedicated to sharing lessons and experiences along the Lean Journey in the Quest for True North. The blog also serves as the source for learning and reflection which are critical elements in Lean Thinking.

Tim is a Lean practitioner with nearly 20 years of Lean manufacturing experience. He currently leads continuous improvement efforts for an innovative leader who brings light and data to millions of spaces around the world.

Tim McMahon is a member of ASQ Influential Voices who facilitate discussions regarding quality matters globally.